Shoe-holder for trunks.



I. H. BARTLETT.

SHOE HOLDER FOR TRUNKS.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 22,1916.

Patented Apr. 16, 1918.

2 SHEETS-SHEET I.

vobiiflggoooc g I A g I 'II s \Q Q k, "51' J, H. BARTLETT.

SHOE HOLDER FOR IRUNKS.

Patented Aprf16, 1918.

2 SHEETSSHEET 2.

APPLICATION FILED NOV-22, 1916- UNITED STATES PATENT ornmn.

JOHN H.

BARTLETT, or OSHKOSH, WISCONSIN, Assmnoa TO THE osnxo'sn mom: company, or osnxosn, WIsooNsm, A coaroaarron or WISCONSIN.

SHOE-HOLDER FOR TRUNKS.

To all whom it may concern."

Be it known that I, JOHN H. BARTLETT, a citizen of the United States, residing at Oshkosh, in the county of Winnebago and State of Wisconsin, have invented new and useful Improvements in Shoe Holders for Trunks, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to shoe holders for trunks, and more particularly for trunks of the wardrobe type.

. Among the objects of my invention isto improve the construction of shoe holders of the' kind referred to, in the several particulars, as will hereinafter more fully appear, and to provide in particular a shoe holder that may be readily and quickly removed from the trunk for the purpose of not only cleaning the shoe holder, but also the portion of the trunk occupied thereby, and thus maintain both in a clean aridsanitary condition. f a

The invention consists further in the matters hereinafter described, and more particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings:

Figure l is a perspective view looking into an open wardrobe trunk containing a shoe holder embodyingthe features of my.invention, the cover of the shoe holder being shown in its closed position and broken par tially away; I

Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional view taken on line 2--2 of Fig. 1, the cover of the shoe holder being shown in its closed position;

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary perspective view looking into one of the lower corners of the wardrobe section and showing the groove for receiving one of the edges of the shoe holder;

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the shoe holder removed from the trunk;

Fig. 5 is a sectional view taken on line 55 of Fig. 4; and

Fig. 6 is a sectional 6-6 of said Fig. 4.

In said drawings, I have shown in detail one preferred form of shoe holder device embodying the features of my invention and as being applied to a wardrobe type of trunk,

view taken on line which, as illustrated, comprises two vertical,

hinged together sections 10 and 11, one constituting the wardrobe section of the trunk and the other the drawer section thereof. As illustrated, the section 10 constitutes the wardrobe section of the trunk, in that/the Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented'Apr.-16, 191s.

Application filed November 22, 1916. Serial 170. 132,853. Y

extensible trolleys 12, 12, the garment hang- I ers 13, 13, and the adjustable follower 14 are all located in their'proper positions in the upper part of said section 10, while the other 'sectlonll contains a tier of movable drawers or like containers 15,- 15.

As shown in Fig. 4 said shoe holder com prises a fiat, rectangular base-board 16, pref-- .erably made of wood or any other suitably stiff material. Extending lengthwise across one side of said base board 16 isa fiat strip 17, made of a suitable, relatively stiff material and being corrugated or bent to provide a plurality of outwardly bowed or loop Shaped sections'lS, adapted to form, with the base-board therebehind, a plurality of openended, shoe-receiving spaces or pockets 19, 19. ,The strip 17 is made considerably narrower than the width of the base-board 16 and extends centrally across the same, so that the shoes may be inserted toe first into said pockets 19 from either open end thereof. Thus the base-board 16 may be placed in the trunk with either longitudinal edge thereof uppermost. As shown .in Fig. 6, the ends of said strip 17 are folded over and around the end edges of the base-board, and are secured to the rear side thereof by fastening members or rivets 20. Said strip 17 is made of a material of such stiffness that when once bent to provide the looped sections 18, the latter will all remain in such .form. Each looped section 18 is usually ed through holes 22, 22 in the board, and

are bent toward each other and secured to the backof the board by fasteningmembers or rivets 23, 23, as shownin Figs. 5 and 6. Along eaclrlongitudinal edge of said baseboard 16 are an'equal number of holes 24, 24, which form part of the means for detachably holding said base board in the trunk.

As customary in trunks of the kind referredto, the wardrobe section 10 hastwo upright side walls 25, 25, an upright rear or back wall26, and a bottom wall 27 Located in said section 10 and secured to the bottom wall 27thereof is a strip of wood or cleat 28, the latter extending between the side walls 25, and spaced outward from the back wall- 26, so as to provide an upwardly.

. in such position, I provide on the back wall 26a plurality of fastening members, preferably in the form of turn buttons 30, 30, the latter being equal in number to the holes 24 in the upper edge of the base-board. When inserting the base-board in the trunk,

the rotatable heads 31 (see Fig. 3) of the turn buttons are in positio"n to readily pass I through the holes 24:, and when turned into their locking positions, namely, at right angles to the stems of the turn buttons, the latter serve to hold the base-board in the trunk and against the'wall 26 thereof, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2. Inasmuch .as there are an equal number of holes 24 along each longitudinal edge of the base-board, the latter may be placed on the wardrobe section 10v with either longitudinal edge lowermost and in the groove 29. As shown in Fig. 1, the base-board 16 is made of a length to eX- tend substantially across the wardrobe section, and therefore provide the greatest number of shoe holders 18, 18 permitted by ,the width of said section. To remove the base-board 16,- the rotatable heads of the turn buttons 30, 30 are turned into their unlocking position so as to pass through the adjacent holes 24, 24, and thereupon the board may be readily grasped and completely withdrawn from the trunk.

When in the trunk, the shoes are held in the pockets 19 with toes extending downward and heels upward, and, no matter how careful the user of the trunk may be in first seeing that the shoes are wiped off before being placed inthe holders, yet if the shoes are left uncovered there is a possibility of the lower ends of the delicate and other garments on the hangers 13, 13 being soiled by rubbing against or' contacting with the shoes. This is especially true with respect to ladies garments of that character which are made of fine and delicate material and used' for parties, dances, and like formal social occasions. The polish or other material used for shining or cleaning the shoes will readily rub off and produce a smear or smudge on such garments if brought in contact with the shoes, and for avoiding this I provide -a protecting flap or cover 32 for completely inclosing the baseboard 16 and the shoes held thereon. Said cover 32 is preferably made of any suitably fiexible, textile fabric, and has its lower margin secured to the bottom ,wall 27. As shown in Figs. 2 and .3, the inner margin of the cover'32 is inserted beneath the cleat'28.

Formed in the outer or free edge of the cover 32 are a plurality of holes or eyelets 33, adapted to pass over the turn buttons 30 when the rotatable heads 31 thereof are in unlocked position. The flap 32 is made of such dimensions as to completely cover the base-board 16 and its shoe holders when said flap is closed, and the same is detachably held in such position by the turn buttons 30. Manifestly, before the base-board 16 can be removed from the trunk or inserted therein, the cover flap '32 must be first swung down 'in its open position, as shown in Fig; 3. 1

The fact that the shoe holder 16 may be completely removed from the trunk presents numerous advantages. First, it is self evident that the base-board'16, as well as the strip 17, will become soiled by the mud, sand, and the like rubbing or scraping OK the shoes, and by having the shoe holder detachably mounted in the trunk, the shoe holder may be readily removed therefrom for the purpose of being brushed olf and cleaned. Furthermore, the particles of mud, sand, and the like in being scraped off the shoes will fall and accumulate in the bottom of the trunk behind the cover flap 32 and in the groove 29. Manifestly, by being able to completely remove the shoe holder and open the cover 32, the bottom of the trunk and the groove 29 may be readily and easily cleaned.

It follows, therefore, that the shoe holder and ,the bottom of the trunk may be kept clean and sanitary. Then again, the, cover flap 32 being secured along its lower edge, the cover may be swung down against the bottom wall of the trunk and be in the most convenient position for being brushed off and cleaned. Moreover the cover flap 32 being secured to the bottom wall 27, said cover flap may be dropped into its open position and permit the ready insertion or withdrawal of the shoes from the pockets 19, it being unnecessary, therefore, to use one hand for holding the cover flap open. When the shoe holder is not in use, it 'is retained in its position in the trunk, as shown in Fig. 2, and the cover. flap 32 is held closed. Other and further advantages of my invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art.

While I have shown and described herein my novelshoe holder device as being-applied to a wardrobe trunk, yet it is clear that said device may be used in trunks of other types, and, in fact, used in any connection where 'it is desired to accomplish the objects of my invention.

Although I- have shown and described herein in detail one preferred form of my device, yet it is to be understood that the details of construction shown and arrangement of parts illustrated may be variously changed and modified without "departing from the spirit and sec e of my invention, and I do not wish to be limited to the details of construction and arrangement of parts shown, except as pointed out in the annexed claims.

I'claim as my invention:

1. A trunk having two vertical, hinged together sections, one of which is provided with an upright wall and a bottomv wall, a cleat secured to said bottom wall and spaced from said upright wall to provide an upwardly opening groove, a shoe holder comprising a base-board adapted to be placed against said upright wall with one of'its edgesin said groove, fastening members for detachably holding said base-board against said upright wall, and a cover for said shoe holder, said cover having a marginal portion secured to-said bottom wall'and extending beneath said clea't. v

2. A trunk having two vertical,hinged together sections, one .of which is, provided with an upright'wall and a bottom Wall, the latter being provided with an upwardly opening groove, a shoe holder comprising a base-board adapted to be placed against said upright wall with one of its edges in said groove, means adapted to detachably hold said base-board against said upright wall,

embracing turn'buttons on the latter and holes in said base-board, and a cover for said .shoe holder, said cover being secured togsaid bottom wall and provided with holes for the reception of said turn buttons.

. In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my invention, I afiix my signature in the presence of two witnesses, this 20th-day of November, A. D. 1916.

- JOHN H. BARTLETT.

Witnesses:

EUGENE C.-WANN, CLARA L. PEOPLES, 

